Circles
by Kara
Summary: When fights become a comfort to an innocent bystander, you know the world is definitely frakked up. KaraLee, thru KLG1.


Circles  
By Kara   
Spoilers: Through KLG 1  
Pairing: Kara/Lee  
Summary: When fights become a comfort to an innocent bystander, you know the world is definitely frakked up.They moved in circles, like some kind of bird of prey. No one could really decide if Starbuck was the hawk, waiting to swoop in on unsuspecting Apollo, or if Apollo would be the one to knock Lt. Thrace off course. There were bets, but no one had cashed in yet. There were even bets on who would win. Starbuck was the favorite in that one. And the crew needed something to gossip about, since the Chief and Boomer were off again. Maybe even for good.

They were arguing. Again. No one really noticed anymore, because it was part of life on deck. No one was really sure about the new CAG at first, especially since he was the Commander's son, but even she felt more comfortable around him now, especially since he was daring (or stupid) enough to actually argue with Starbuck. And after what happened on the Astral Queen, Cally had a lot more respect for Captain Apollo now. He was a real guy, even if he still saw her as the scared little deckhand.

It was hard to tell what they were arguing about this time. It actually looked serious. Starbuck wasn't smirking, and Apollo wasn't hiding a smile like he usually did when Starbuck was disrespectful to him. She got away with more than probably anyone on Galactica. Rumor was when Cally first got assigned to the ship that Starbuck was the Commander's kid from some affair. Or that she was his secret lover or something. But Apollo and Starbuck didn't act like brother and sister even if they argued like it. Brothers and sisters might take swings at each other, but they didn't verbally assault each other as if their lives and their beliefs depended on it.

But the world wasn't sane anymore. Instead of twelve colonies, they had a little fleet of ships in the big middle of nowhere. She almost couldn't remember what the ground felt like. Or real gravity. Socinus actually admitted to missing the rain. They were all tense, even though the President kicked Zarek's ass in the Quorum. But you never relaxed these days, because you never knew what was going to happen. Which was why you took bets on things like Starbuck and Apollo, and why you wondered why someone so rebellious meant so much to two of the most powerful men in the Fleet, especially when they're so willing to waste all those resources to find her.

"Fascinating, isn't it?" She didn't even hear the Commander sneak up on her, but that was probably why he was still alive in all this mess. He had an amazing ability to pop up anywhere he wanted. There were still stories that were told about Husker in the first Cylon war.

"I guess so." You couldn't admit to Apollo's father that your main preoccupation was figuring out the sex life of his son, especially since your Chief's illegal liaison with an officer was on the fritz. "They look…"

"Like something's wrong." The Commander had that little smile on his face, the one that Dee talked about sometimes whenever he was feeling sentimental. But the smile didn't last too long. It faded as quickly as anything else these days. "Something might actually be wrong."

She wasn't a gossip queen, but she wasn't privileged to some of the top secret information that Dee heard in the CIC either. But something made her want to ask more, if only because her study of the strange Starbuck-Apollo animal wouldn't be complete without it. "Sir?"

The Commander almost looked absent-minded. "They never fought like this, not even about Zak."

And then the punch came. And the second punch from Starbuck's fist. Cally covered her mouth with her hand before the two heard her gasp. The Commander actually put his hand on her shoulder, either to restrain her or comfort her. She couldn't decide which.

"Let them ride it out, Specialist." But even the Commander looked worried. It surprised her that he didn't court martial them both then and there. He didn't seem too surprised that they swung at each other. He almost seemed resigned to it.

Maybe the brothers and sisters thing wasn't so far off. Starbuck and Apollo didn't look alike, but they both had the same intensity about them. They also had the same love of flying. It was a look that they both got when they first got into their Vipers. It was the same fierce look they both had now.

"Do you have siblings, Specialist?" Cally almost forgot that the Commander was still there until he spoke. They watched the aftermath of the scene play out, both parties stalking off in opposite directions.

"Had a brother. But we didn't--" She didn't have to finish her sentence, because the Commander was already chuckling.

"Not many people fall under the same circumstances as Kara and Lee, Specialist. I understand. More than you think." And to her surprise, he actually winked at her.

"But why does it seem like things are always frakked up between them?" She blushed, but the Commander didn't seem to mind her honesty.

"Baggage, Specialist. We all have it. Those two have a bit more than most. They might even figure it out someday."

"It's like they're trying to protect each other or something." Maybe that whole bird of prey thing wasn't too far off.

"Only from themselves, Specialist. It's a defense mechanism." He looked at her. "The same way some people might hide behind an innocent look."

Not many people ever questioned her motives. Not many people ever thought to ask what might be going on in her head, because they were too busy calling her baby sister and trying to take care of her. Yeah, there were those lost weeks after the Colonies went away, but everyone had those. It wasn't something that you could dwell on anymore, especially not with better things to worry about, like water rationing and almost being raped by escaped prisoners.

"So you think they'll be okay?" It wasn't like she didn't enjoy the daily Starbuck-Apollo confrontation. It was one of the things they could count on, a small comfort that reminded her that things were still normal on some plane of existence.

This time the Commander was silent for a while. "They have to work through whatever it is in either case." He sighed. "We all have a lot we have to work through. Especially if we want to keep the ones we love."

The Chief caught her eye from the other side of the deck, waving frantically at her. The Commander smiled at her, clearly dismissing her. "I think someone needs your expertise, Cally."

She stood next to him for a minute, not sure if she wanted to hug him like she would've done to her dad, or salute him to make him feel better. "If they don't figure it out before I'm too old to enjoy grandchildren, I'll help them out a little." He winked at her. "Back to work, Specialist."

"Yes, sir!" She saluted him before trotting back across the deck. When she looked back, the Commander was still staring at Starbuck's Raider, like it might have the answers that none of them knew.

"Put a little more attention into your work, Cally. The drama's not going anywhere until you get off shift." The Chief handed her a clipboard with her next assignment before waving her on her way.

Birds probably didn't fly over Caprica anymore, but there might be another planet somewhere that had avian life. There might even be a place where they could settle on the ground and feel the rain again and just be a normal society. And then maybe the Commander would get those grandchildren that he wanted to see. If someone else was watching over Starbuck and Apollo, that meant that she could just sit back on the sidelines and watch the dance as it played out.


End file.
